Before the Storm
by Woeful
Summary: Attending school whilst on the brink of war was already enough to give someone anxiety. Throw being a lycanthrope on top of that, and then you've got Remus Lupin. And now, Remus has a secret that he doesn't want to tell; something he thinks will really drive his friends away from him. Wolfstar, Jily.
1. Chapter 1

To muggles, the first of September meant that autumn was just around the corner—the weather would soon slowly turn bleak, the leaves would soon turn from their summery green to their warmer tones of rust. People would be stuck thinking about where they had stored their clothes for colder weather, and of course, whose turn it was next to rake the leaves accumulating on their front lawn.

Of course, these fickle things were the last items on anyone of magical backgrounds' minds on this notoriously hectic day. From crying parents seeing their children off to Hogwarts for the first time to the myriad of students giddily chatting about how their summer holidays were, Platform Nine and Three-Quarters was almost deafening. It was so crowded, too, and not to mention particularly hot for this time of year; there didn't seem to be enough room for a single person to step and be comfortable.

One person, however, had already escaped the chaos: Remus Lupin.

He had, after all, come to the station by himself this year, so he maneuvered through the massive crowd, unnoticed, quite easily. His trunk in tow, he boarded the practically empty train and slipped into his usual compartment.

It was the boy's seventh and final year attending Hogwarts, and he had never felt so conflicted. Yes, he was positively thrilled to be able to say that he would be soon completing his studies at Hogwarts, but he most definitely didn't want to leave the comfort of those hallowed halls that had become his safe haven from himself.

He bit his lip as his mind _ever so kindly_ reminded him that after this year he would no longer be living with the people he cared about most in his life. He wasn't exactly sure what he was going to do without them—or if he could handle being alone with his thoughts for longer than he already had been.

He shook his head to himself, believing that it wasn't rational for him to be thinking about _after_ the year when the year had technically just begun. In a mindless attempt to get his mind off things, he started fiddling with the wrapper of the chocolate bar in his pocket as he waited for his friends to arrive.

Remus had almost caved and opened his chocolate bar at least seventeen times before the door to his compartment slid open and in stumbled James and Sirius, laughing as if they had consumed a little too much chortle extract. A grin spread across Remus's face as he leaned back into the seat.

"Moony, you'll never guess what just happened…—"

"Downright hilarious, it was…—"

"Those poor 'Puffs never saw it coming," James hollered as the pair collapsed across the way from Remus, barely managing to make it onto the seat. "By the way," he managed to utter between laughs, "Don't enter Compartment E unless you want to be the victim of multiple dungbombs."

Remus merely sighed disappointingly, which only made the other two laugh harder; but his eyes glinted in a way that they hadn't since he saw his friends last. He was truly overjoyed to see Sirius and James again.

After their laughter had died down, James proceeded to tell Remus about Sirius and his summer. Notable comments included: _"I swear my mum loves Sirius more than her own son—Pads, wipe that grin off your face"_ , _"I got a motorbike, would you fucking believe it?"_ , and _"Yeah, and he crashed it on his first day with it."_

Remus tried his best to keep up with James and Sirius's conversation, nodding whenever they paused for a reaction and laughing when Sirius yelled at James to stop calling his motorbike an 'it' when it was clearly a 'she', and that her name was 'Christine'.

The pair were midway into their story when Peter shuffled into the compartment, grinning to no end. "James, you'll never guess what I found out," the stocky boy exclaimed, clearly excited about something. As he sat down amongst his friends, his grin turned sheepish as he added, "Hello, lads."

James, his interest clearly piqued, stopped telling the story and turned to Peter. "What? Is it about Lily?" In his excitement, he didn't even bother to greet Peter, let alone ask how his summer holiday was.

Both Remus and Sirius groaned at the mention of the red-headed girl. "James, you've got to stop with her," Sirius complained as Remus simultaneously said, "I'm keeping count of how many times he mentions her this year. And I won't lose track this time."

All the meanwhile, Peter just sat there, bright-eyed and snickering. "Actually…"

If James's jaw had the ability to detach from its socket, it would have been on the floor. "Really?" James questioned a bit too excitedly. He coughed, slightly embarrassed, and he calmed his voice before asking, "What'd you hear?"

Sirius rolled his eyes and muttered, "Fucking Romeo, don't even _try_ to hide it, we all know you're excited," which earned a snort from Remus, more snickering from Peter, and a glare that could kill from James.

Protests of how he was most definitely _not_ like Romeo Montague were cut off by a slightly exasperated Peter, who clearly wanted to share his news as soon as possible. "She's Head Girl."

Three pairs of eyes were now concentrated on a boy who clearly wanted to do some sort of dance for joy in the middle of their current quarters. "Head… Girl…?" James queried, wanting to make sure he heard correctly before he reacted. When Peter nodded, James's eyes widened to the size of saucers. "Merlin, we'll be living together." His voice was barely a whisper, and his eyes glazed over in a daydream.

Remus snapped his fingers in front of James's face, bringing James back into reality. "You'll also be _working_ together, Prongs."

Peter nodded, agreeing with Remus. "And if you let her down, say goodbye to the already incredibly slim chance you had with her."

James's eyes glazed over again in daydream. "I have a chance with her?"

Sirius whacked both Peter and James with his copy of the Daily Prophet. While James understood why he was hit, Peter cried out in objection; and Sirius justified his actions by saying that he shouldn't be getting James's ridiculously optimistic—and rather deluded—hopes up.

"Might as well go to the prefect's car now, Jamesy. Maybe you'll have more of a chance with her this time around," Sirius quipped rather sarcastically, and Remus and Peter could both tell that Sirius had already had his share of lovestruck Potter for the day.

The sarcasm flew right over the boy's head, so Sirius's words were all the encouragement James needed. He straightened out his button-down and ran his fingers through his hair a couple of times before shooting up out of his seat and calling out "Wish me luck!" behind him as he made his way to the compartment at the front of the train.

Sirius dramatically rolled his eyes before settling back into the seat. "You lads want anything from the trolley?" He snatched up a pouch that James had left behind in his frenzy. He dangled the bag in front of Remus and Peter mischievously as the contents of the bag clinked together. "Prongs is paying."

Remus smirked but shook his head no as he gathered his things. "I should probably be off to the prefect's compartment as well." He stood and began to depart the compartment briskly, knowing that there was much to discuss and do there. Just as he was about to exit, he stopped in his tracks and turned to face Sirius, leaning up against the door just slightly. "Do you think James will be able to convince Lily to go out with him this year?"

A playful grin stretched across Sirius's face as he took one of James's abandoned galleons out of the velvet bag and began flipping one nonchalantly, the metal sounding a quiet pinging noise each time he did so. "Not a chance."

Peter let out a loud guffaw at Sirius's confession, while Remus just chuckled as he closed the door to the compartment.

If his friends kept this up—which they were; they were the bloody Marauders after all—it was most definitely going to be an interesting year.

* * *

 **New story! Let's see how this one goes, I'm hoping I'll be able to write longer chapters as the story progresses. I know the first chapter's short, but let me know what you all think of it so far!**

 **x Lauren**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own the anything except the plot.

* * *

The Prefect's car was buzzing with excitement by the time Remus entered. The Slytherin prefects, who, to his surprise, he didn't recognize, were busy scribbling on a piece of parchment. Lily was shuffling through a rather large notebook as she ignored James, who was already pestering her.

Remus kept a close eye on the pair as he made his way to the nearest empty seat. He could almost feel the waves of irritation emanating from the red-haired girl. For a moment, he felt bad for both of them- James, because he was his best friend and he really never stopped pining for her, and Lily, because his love struck friend just wouldn't leave her alone. But that moment faded almost as quickly as it had come to his mind as they began to argue; Lily's face had turned pink with frustration as she yelled at him, and James almost looked sheepish.

Remus rolled his eyes and tuned them out almost instantly, returning to his own thoughts. As he watched the landscape fly by through the window, his gaze settled on the sky. Above the horizon, he could make out the outline of the moon. He squinted, trying to make out what phase it was, even though he already knew what it would be. _Waxing gibbous._ As his eyes nervously darted away from the moon, away from the terrible thoughts that came with the idea of an upcoming transformation, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Remus jumped in his seat.

"Hey, Remus," a silvery voice cut through the raucous tittering of the compartment. "It's good to see you."

Remus looked over his shoulder and a smile spread across his face. "Hello, Alice," he greeted. "I'm glad to see you'll be my other half for this term."

"Well," Alice laughed, "Considering that you've known me since our first year, I'm glad you still think that."

The boy smiled as his friend sat down in the seat next to him. "So," he asked, "how've you been?"

The two caught up quite quickly. Remus listened intently as Alice told him about a few of her adventures over the summer, and Alice laughed loudly when Remus told her that he had done nothing except studied for the upcoming year during the holiday.

"Remus," she managed to say in between laughs, "haven't you any idea what a holiday is actually for?"

Before Remus could answer, the train had come to a screeching halt, practically throwing some students out of their seats. As he looked out of the window, he could see his school out on the horizon. His eyes lit up, just the slightest, but the rest of his face showed signs of confusion. "We're here already?"

"I suppose time flies by when you're having fun," she commented as she winked at him. "I have to go meet Frank, we'll meet up later to do rounds?"

"Of course!" Remus agreed as he shrugged on his robes. He turned to her to say goodbye, but she was already gone.

Remus looked over to see if James was still there so they could walk out together, and he was glad to see that he was. However, the head boy was _still_ arguing with the head girl, and the latter seemed to be more angry than before.

"Damn it, Potter," Remus heard her yell out. "I didn't even get the chance to start the meeting since you wasted all of my time!" She gathered all of her things. "You'd better not be like this every day, or I promise you, I will hex you to the end of next year!" With that, she stormed out of the compartment, too angry to even notice and acknowledge the rest of her audience.

James looked at Remus exasperatedly, somewhat relieved that his friend was here with him. "Mate," he grinned, "I think she likes me."

Remus merely groaned in response.

* * *

"I heard that the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is rubbish this year."

"Like you'd even fucking pay attention anyway, Sirius."

The boys were lounging in their dormitory after the Great Feast. They were all sitting on the ornate rug in the center of the room, trying to figure out what they should do to to commemorate their last first night back at school.

Remus leaned back on his trunk as he listened to the other three contemplate. Even though he wasn't exactly taking part in the conversation, he felt included; the way being with his friends always did.

"I say that we sneak into Hogsmeade like last year," Sirius suggested, waving the Marauder's map above his head. "That was a good time." He wiggled his eyebrows playfully, and James threw a pillow at him.

Rolling his eyes, James retorted, "A good time? Tell me how watching you snog some Ravenclaw was a good time for us." He slipped his tie over his head and threw it at Sirius, who looked extremely offended.

"Yeah," Peter agreed with James. "It doesn't count as a good time if it was only enjoyable for you."

Sirius put up his hands in defense. "Oi! Stop with the throwing!" he shouted as he moved up to his bed. "Moony, tell 'em it was a good time!"

Remus snorted in response. "That was fun for you and you only, Sirius."

Sirius shot Remus a dirty look and turned back to James and Peter. "Fine. Any other suggestions, then?"

"We could always just get drunk," Peter piped up.

James grinned and clapped him on the back. "I knew we kept you around for a reason, Wormtail!" Peter almost looked smug, as if to say _I know._

Sirius's eyes lit up and he turned to their quiet friend, who was very obviously busy thinking over the pros and cons of potentially getting shit-faced drunk the night before classes resumed. "What do you say, Remus?"

With a full moon right around the corner, the lycanthrope was feeling particularly anxious; so he shrugged his shoulders and said, "I suppose I could use something to take the edge off."

Before any of the rest of the boys could make some smart comment about Remus willingly letting the rest of the group have some fun, he pulled on his robes and got up to leave. "But you all have to get it all ready. I have to go do rounds." As he made his way out of the room and down the stairs, he called out behind him, "And I suggest you go do the same, Prongs!"

Remus could hear their planning on exactly how they were going to get firewhisky at this hour echoing down the staircase. He smiled to himself as walked out of the common room to go find Alice. It looked like the other boys were going to find their way into Hogsmeade tonight after all.

* * *

The corridors of Hogwarts were quieter than the most nights. There was hardly anyone out and about, and aside from the prefects, the school felt empty. But the halls were still as welcoming as ever, despite their stony exterior.

Remus walked his round alone. After Alice had met up with him, he told her it was okay for her to finish her rounds with Frank for the night, since things weren't particularly hectic on their route and she hadn't seen him for awhile now. It had taken some convincing, but eventually she offered him a gracious smile and told him that she owed him one before taking off.

As he made his way along his route, he came to regret letting Alice leave him alone. Somewhere along the way, his thoughts wandered back to his impending transformation.

His chest tightened with anxiety as he thought about it. Would this transformation be easier, now that he was with his friends again? Or would his friends' presences make things more dangerous? He couldn't help but worry for them, and the last thing he wanted was for him to hurt any of them while he wasn't in his right mind. He wouldn't know what he would do if he hurt any of them.

He found himself reaching for his emergency chocolate bar in the pocket of his robes, but he pulled his hand away. "Stupid, stupid," he muttered to himself as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. He utterly despised himself for getting like this before every full moon. "You just need to get a grip, Lupin. Nothing's even happened yet."

It seemed to be forever before Remus found himself nearing the end of his rounds. As he took a deep breath, he checked his watch and started walking back to his dorm. However, before he could make it there, he heard the muffled sound of crying coming across the corridor.

Remus's breathing returned to almost normal as he peered around the corner. A frown settled on his face when took in the sight in front of him. A small boy was sitting on the ground with his knees pulled up to his chest, his eyes red from crying. Remus approached him cautiously, not wanting to startle him.

"Are you alright?" Remus asked quietly as he moved closer to the boy.

The boy almost instantly stopped his crying and wiped away his tears as he heard the voice. He shot up off the ground, standing up straight, and fixed his robes. "Yes, sir," he replied shakily.

Remus wasn't so easily convinced, but he let the boy have his pride. "Well, then, off to your dormitory, okay? I don't want to give you detention on the first night." He offered the boy a soft smile before resuming his walk back to his own dorm.

His trip, however, was interrupted by a tug on the sleeve of his robe. "E—excuse me, Mr. Prefect, sir…"

Remus turned around to see the same young boy from before. As he looked more closely at the boy's face, he realized that he must have been hit recently, for their was a bruise developing on the side of his cheek the size of the snitch.

"I can't go back to my dormitory," the boy admitted. He shook his head furiously when Remus cocked his eyebrow in question. "I—I can't find it."

"First year?"

The boy nodded shamefully in response.

Remus patted him on the back. "It's alright, I'll take you there. What house?"

"Hufflepuff," the boy replied, his eyes still glued to the ground.

Remus nodded and started to walk the boy to the kitchens, talking him through the directions as they went. Remus stopped mid-sentence, however, when he heard the boy sniffle. He took another glance at him and could tell that he was trying to bite back tears.

It didn't even take a second for Remus to decide that this boy needed his emergency chocolate more than he did. He rummaged through his pocket and handed the candy to him. "I know it's not much, but this might be able to help you feel a bit better."

The boy's eyes lit up as he took the candy from him. "Wow, thank you, sir."

Remus grinned, knowing he'd made the right decision earlier on to save the candy. "Remus. I'm Remus," he introduced himself as they approached the corridor to their destination. "Here it is, now. Have a good night."

The boy nodded, looking much happier already, and Remus couldn't tell if it was because he was relieved to be back where he needed to be or if it was because of him. "Thank you, Mr. Remus, sir!" Before Remus could say goodbye, or even ask for his name, the boy had scurried off to the entrance of his common room.

For a moment, as Remus made his way back to his dormitory, he felt like a good person. Like an actual human being, just trying to be helpful. But then he remembered his schedule a few days from then, and his typical hatred towards himself returned.

He really hoped that his friends were able to acquire a bottle of something—anything—alcoholic while he was out doing his rounds, because boy, he could really use a drink.

* * *

As always, let me know what you all think.

Unrelated note, but did anyone else see the eclipse yesterday? I was ridiculously amazed.

-Lauren


	3. Chapter 3

It was safe to say that Remus was drunk.

Drunk, drunkity drunk, drunk, drunk.

He could barely even remember how it had started. He recalled walking into the dormitory after completing his rounds, and then Sirius offering him his first drink of the night; but after that? There was only one thing that Remus was sure of, and it was that he drank to forget himself. He wasn't even sure how much alcohol he had consumed, and he sure as hell didn't care.

And the rest of his friends were too far gone to stop him from continuing to down more and more firewhisky. James was too busy laughing at something Peter had said, Peter was too busy telling the story that Remus could hardly make out, and Sirius had just stumbled out of the room, saying that he needed a smoke.

Remus was currently splayed out on the floor, clutching the bottle of alcohol in one hand. He stared up at the ceiling and, to his surprise, watched it move. Had the support beams always swirled like that?

He reached out to uncork the bottle and took another swig of its contents, the warm feeling of the liquid comfortably burning the back of his throat. Struggling to stand, he used one of the trunks to support himself as he got up. He drunkenly staggered to the window to get some fresh air.

Even in his intoxicated state, Remus could tell that it was particularly windy that night, especially for September. The wind whipped around his face as he leaned out the window, tousling his light brown hair wildly. He blinked a couple of times, trying to remedy his now slightly dried eyes, looking up. A frown became etched on his face as he saw the soft light of the moon coming through some clouds. This sobered him up a bit, and he ran through his hair nervously as that unwelcoming feeling of anxiety flooded his senses.

 _No, no. This was all wrong._ He wasn't supposed to feel like this! To be coherent enough to actually feel? Remus's frown deepened, the worry lines on his forehead becoming more prominent. He started shaking his hand back and forth, tapping his leg, in attempt to calm down. Why wasn't the alcohol working like it was supposed to? And an even better question, why wasn't Remus having fun? Wasn't that what this night was supposed to be about?

"Oi, Moony, you aren't looking too good, mate… Drink too much?" Peter slurred as he climbed into bed.

Remus shook his head. His friend was clearly intoxicated, just not enough to be totally oblivious. "I'm fine," he replied, trying to sound as convincing as possible.

Peter narrowed his eyes, and Remus knew that he wasn't as convincing as he hoped. "Right… If you're fine, then I'm more than fucked," Peter quipped.

Remus laughed, probably too hard, and he blamed his overreaction on the alcohol that was flowing through his veins. "Tomorrow'll probably be rough, won't it?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer.

The boy nodded in response, cringing slightly. "Don't remind me about tomorrow, Moony," he said quietly as he started to doze off, curling up into his blankets.

Remus hoped, for his friend's sake, that he would be able to sleep off whatever he drank that night. He was about to ask him if he drank some water to help with his probable hangover the next morning, but he was already snoring.

This was usually how his group's drunken nights went: Peter would fall asleep first. James would talk about some feature of Lily's until the point where Sirius would either leave the room or throw the bottle at him, and Remus, no matter how drunk he had gotten, always put himself in charge of making sure that everyone was asleep in their beds, safe and sound.

And it looked like Sirius had decided to make it difficult for him that night, since he had left. Remus headed out of their room to go collect his friend, putting down the bottle on James's nightstand.

Speaking of James, where the hell had he gone off to?

Remus shook his head, slightly worried for his friend, too drunk to remember that his friend now lived in the Head Boy and Head Girl dormitory instead of with them. James was then quickly forgotten, as Sirius the one Remus chose to go round up first.

The stone staircase echoed with each step he took as he stumbled down the stairs. The sound bounced off the walls, and Remus tried desperately to silence his steps. His state didn't quite exactly help him, however, since he could hardly even walk steadily. He barely managed to make it all the way down without slipping, and he silently thanked Merlin as he made his way out of the Gryffindor common room.

The Fat Lady must have been asleep when he slipped out of the tower, for Remus heard loud complaints coming from her as he swung her painting open. "Oi! What the bloody hell do you think you're doing, waking me up from my beauty sleep? You'd better not be coming back here; if you wake me up again, I swear to Merlin…" the guardian yelled out, obviously upset for being awoken.

Remus stopped for a second, but he didn't turn around. He didn't want to reveal his identity to her, especially since he was a prefect. "I'm sorry, ma'am," he muttered before scurrying away. The tips of his ears burned, feeling embarrassed and sorry since he woke her up. The woman of the portrait wasn't done giving him a talking to, and Remus could hear her voice through the hall, raging in annoyance, as he continued his search for Sirius.

He found himself walking way off the grounds of the school, searching for about an hour, before he found his friend. At this point, at which Remus estimated to be about three in the morning, the sight of the smoke coming from Sirius's cigarette was almost relieving.

Sirius was sitting at the edge of the Black Lake, looking out towards the water. The silvery light of the moon reflected off of the water and the top of his hair, and if Remus wasn't so focused on bringing Sirius back to their dormitory, he would have found the sight positively repulsive.

"I can hear you, y'know," Sirius said without even turning around. He patted the ground next to him, inviting Remus to sit down with him, as he took a drag from his cigarette.

Even though Remus was tired, he didn't hesitate to sit down next to his friend. "Sorry, mate," he apologized, rather unnecessarily.

Sirius shook his head as he blew the smoke out from his lungs. He looked out towards the stagnant water of the lake, his eyes glazed over.

They sat in silence for awhile before Remus spoke. "I came to bring—"

"Bring me back to the dormitory, I know," Sirius interrupted, bringing his cigarette to his lips once again. He exhaled, letting the smoke wash over him. "I'll only be another minute."

Remus nodded, his friend's serious tone throwing him for a loop. "Everything okay?" he dared to ask. He hadn't seen Sirius so, well, _serious_ , in an extremely long time.

Sirius began to nod, but as Remus raised an eyebrow in question towards him, he let out a chuckle and shook his head no. "Figures you see right through me, Moony," he sighed. He hesitated before continuing. "Reg got his dark mark over the summer," he whispered. "I saw it coming, but…" He trailed off disappointingly.

Remus frowned. Anything that had to do with Sirius's family was always a difficult subject, and he knew that his friend had always hoped for a change of heart within his brother.

"And I know the war is happening," Sirius continued, his voice strained. He ran his fingers through his hair, distressed. "I can't imagine facing him on the opposite side, mate. I can't."

Remus stayed silent, knowing very well that it could happen. As much as he wanted to comfort his friend, to reassure that nothing like that would happen, he couldn't lie to him like that.

"Now would be a good time to say something, Moony," Sirius joked weakly as he laid back onto the ground. He put his cigarette out, smashing the end into the sand, before tossing the butt into the bushes.

"I'm sorry, Pads. I really am," Remus said grimly.

Sirius pulled out a flask from his jacket pocket and downed quite a bit before replying. "It's alright," he replied plainly as he offered the flask to Remus.

 _But it's not,_ he thought as he took the flask quite gladly, and even though he knew he probably shouldn't have any more, he drank some. He handed the flask back to Sirius, who tipped the rest of its contents back into his mouth. "I suppose we should be heading back now?" Sirius asked, clearly wanting to change the subject.

Remus nodded as he pushed himself up off of the ground and stood. He offered his hand to Sirius and then pulled him up as well.

"Thanks," he muttered as he brushed the dirt off of his trousers, tucking his now-empty flask back into his jacket. He stumbled backwards as he took a step, and Remus caught him gracefully. He pulled Sirius's arm around his shoulders and had him lean against him for support.

Sirius's close proximity allowed for Remus to be able to smell the smoke and alcohol lingering on his clothes, and he scrunched his nose in disgust. "Mate, your smoking habit—"

"Needs to be put to an end, I know. You've told me many times before," Sirius drawled drunkenly, his eyes closing as he leaned against his friend.

Remus gave him a tight-lipped smile and started to walk them back. He was, however, worried about his friend's current state. "How much did you have to drink tonight, mate?"

Sirius merely laughed in response. "Nothing I can't handle…" He tripped over his feet, and Remus was more than grateful that he had a secure grip on him.

But Remus didn't believe his response for a second, especially when Sirius began to become a deadweight.

Safe to say, it was a long trip back to their room.

* * *

When Remus woke up the next morning, he was pleasantly surprised that he wasn't hungover. However, he couldn't say the same for his friends—Sirius let out a loud groan as he sat up, and Peter had shouted out, "For the love of Merlin, someone put out that light!"

That light was the sun.

After telling his friends to get up out of bed a few times, and them not acknowledging him every time, Remus very politely levitated his friends out of their beds and dumped them onto the ground.

"Oi!" Peter protested. "Was that really necessary?"

Sirius sat up, glaring at Remus before turning his attention to Peter. "Lower your voice, mate, you're too loud."

"Too loud, you say?" Peter raised his voice and shouted back at Sirius, who then grimaced and lunged at him.

Remus watched his friends tousle in amusement for a few moments before clearing his throat. "Looks like you two woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning."

Peter and Sirius stopped their fighting and glared at Remus. The two exchanged knowing glances before Sirius replied, "We're going to get you back for that, Moony. Swear."

Remus scoffed playfully. "Yes, because I should be so afraid of you two whilst being hungover." He grabbed his robes and put them on neatly. "I'll see you when you make it to the Great Hall for breakfast."

" _If_ we make it downstairs for breakfast," Peter whined, slumping back down onto the floor.

Remus gave them both a look before snatching up his book bag and heading out of the room. He was so glad that he wasn't hungover.

* * *

Remus was going over his class schedule when the rest of his friends arrived at the table, all of them sitting down as they complained to each other.

"She yelled at me last night," James said, clearly annoyed. "Apparently, I was being too loud for her. And then when she smelled the liquor on me, she nearly bit my head off."

Sirius snorted in amusement. "I'm sure that was nothing compared to the Fat Lady when me and Moony came back last night," he retorted, swiping a sausage link from the center plate. "Never disturb that woman's sleep."

Remus chuckled, but was too lost in his schedule to add anything to the conversation. He twirled his quill between his fingers as he looked it over. He was already anxious about them, and he wondered to himself why he even agreed to take on six N.E.W.T.-level classes in the first place.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt a shift in the bench seat. He tore his gaze away from his schedule and looked towards the source of the movement. He was somewhat shocked to see Lily sitting down next to him, especially since it sounded like James upset her last night. "Hi boys."

James, who had suddenly become very interested in his pudding, grew silent, and Remus unintentionally let out a hearty laugh after saying hello to the head girl. James glared at him with daggers in his eyes, and Remus merely shrugged in apology.

Sirius's eyes twinkled in mischief, nodding towards Lily in acknowledgment as if to greet her. "So Jamesie," he said casually while looking directly at Lily, "what did you do last night?"

James's deathly look switched targets, settling on Sirius. Before he even got a chance to respond, Lily groaned and rolled her eyes. After eating a few spoonfuls of pudding, she wiped her mouth with her napkin politely and looked towards Remus. "How were rounds last night?" she asked, ignoring Sirius's comment and James altogether.

Before Remus could answer, James interrupted, "Rounds were fine, thanks for asking."

Lily turned to James, annoyed. "I don't think I was talking to you, Potter," she snapped. "I suppose I'll have to ask you later, Remus. My patience is running low," she paused to glare over at James before turning back to Remus, "and I have quite a few ideas to run by you."

Right before Lily was about to get up and storm off, a knock echoed throughout the Great Hall, reaching every corner of the room and stopping many, many conversations in their tracks. The source of the noise was, almost inevitably, Dumbledore, who was stationed at the center podium.

Remus noted that the usual playful twinkle in his eyes had been replaced by a look more serious, somber even.

"Attention, students!" the headmaster bellowed. "I know I addressed you all before the banquet last night, but I have something of a more serious matter to discuss with you all this morning."

The Great Hall became quiet. The only time Dumbledore was serious was when something was very, very wrong. The man cleared his throat dramatically before continuing. "As you many of you already know, the height of Lord Voldemort's battle is drawing near."

Multiple students across the hall flinched at the use of the Dark Lord's name. If the room was hushed before, it was now silent. "I will not tell you to not be afraid. I will not sugar-coat this. These are dangerous times, for purebloods, muggleborns, and those in-between," the man stated grimly.

"Wow, this is really helping team morale," Sirius quipped, which resulted in James elbowing him in the ribs, for the glasses-wearing boy was listening to Dumbledore intently, his eyes flickering back and forth from his headmaster to the red-headed girl in front of him.

"I urge you all to be careful of who you associate with," he continued, which caused many of the Slytherin students to sit up a little bit straighter. "For you never know who you can trust."

Remus felt uneasy at the headmaster's words. His warning almost sounded like a threat to him. He knew he could trust his friends, but it wasn't them he was worried about. He just couldn't trust himself. He knew Dumbledore's speech was about those loyal to the Dark Lord, but it just seemed to hit so close to home, especially since he was due for a transformation tonight…

"Anyhoo," Dumbledore added, "it's off to class you all go. Have a spectacular first day back!" There was scattered applause after Dumbledore stepped away from the podium and out of the room. Many students looked just as uneasy as Remus felt, and Remus felt like he had just drunk an entire gallon of spoiled milk.

"How does he expect us to have a spectacular first day back after that?" Peter whined.

Remus shrugged, the creeping feeling of anxiety making its way back into his chest. "It was likely just a formality." He pushed his plate away from him, feeling too sick to eat anymore. Picking up his books, he flashed his friends a weak smile. "And with that, I'll be off to potions." He scurried off before anyone could tag along with him, finally enabling himself to be alone with his thoughts.

If he was using class as an escape, he knew things were bad; and he knew they were only going to get worse from here.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading. To those who have this story followed, I apologize for taking so long to post! As always, let me know what you all think!**

 **-Lauren**


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